ILLINOIS’ LIVESTOCK FARMS / ENVIRONMENTAL STUDY

(SPRINGFIELD) The Illinois Associations of Beef, Pork, and Milk recently joined the Illinois Farm Bureau to announce the results of a year-long project to determine the true environmental performance of livestock farms in Illinois, as well as the effectiveness of state regulations already in place. The project, which examined 30 years of publicly available data from many state agencies and academic research, highlights the environmental sustainability and economic impact of livestock farms across the state. The report shows the layers of regulations and rules are working well as the data compiled shows the total number of livestock related complaints into the Illinois EPA dropped dramatically, down from 259 in 1996 to only 24 last year in 2017. Plus, the report shows the livestock production, including all large and small farms, contributes $14.1 billion annually in economic activity in Illinois and adds more than 52,000 jobs. The full 2018 Illinois Livestock Report can be found online at www.ilfb.org/livestocktruth.